Last week I pulled the pin and dropped a grenade into my comfortable life… In the aftermath many are confused and I am staggering about… not in a daze, but in apprehension. It seems I have a limited time to decide what is next, and in this angst, I am constantly seeking out God’s word for my life.

This morning I found myself reading and meditating on 1 Samuel 3. Samuel’s initial response to God’s voice was to think that Eli was calling him, not realizing it was God who was speaking, Samuel went in and woke Eli up 3 times… before he finally was advised by Eli to say to the Lord, “Speak, for your servant hears.”

I have always had a deep affinity with Samuel, who plays a pivotal role in the transition from Israel being ruled by prophetic Judges to the appointment of a King, and the beginning of the end of the Kingdom of Israel. In such a time of upheaval, the people of Israel show brash arrogance and envy. Wanting to be like the kingdoms that surround them, they give up their submission to a loving and protective God to put their trust in a man, a king. And throughout this turbulent time, Samuel stays his course as a messenger of God… speaking truth while the Israelite’s turn their backs on God best!

And as I sit amid this great upheaval in America, I say the same thing to God, “Speak, for your servant hears.”

Just wanted to know your thoughts on this statement.

Agree or disagree???

The greatest adventure in life is not an exotic safari, a booming business success or a love relationship with that perfect someone.  Rather, it’s discovering the purpose for our lives.

A few months ago a blogging friend of mine (girlfriday blog) threatened to begin a thread of blogs entitled: A Case Against Barack Obama.

Preface: I really like her writing, she is smart, witty, and well read… I will disagree with her in this arena (mainly politics) but it is not a reflection of what I think of her personally… which makes this endeavor even more fun.  Her goal is to convince you not to vote for him, and mine will be the opposite, to convince you to vote for him.  “You,” being the moderate Republican who is sitting on the fence between John McCain and not voting at all….

This will be a discussion of issues and not a judgment of character. In this light I will do my best to be polite, tactful, and I will to stick to the issues and not make anything personal.

So expect a post on this later today/tonite.

Scarcity - In economics, scarcity is the problem of infinite human needs and wants, in a world of finite resources. In other words, society does not have sufficient productive resources to fulfill those wants and needs. (wikipedia)

It is in the mind that we battle the reality of the world. We read about it, hear about it and see it all around us, but it is as if our mind is playing the like monkey figurines found in touristy stores, and airports…
See no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil.

Question: In a blind, deaf and dumb world, who is king?

What happens when we turn a blind eye to the signs impending scarcity? When we tune out the cries of scientist’s and environmental advocates as they speak of the damage our excess is causing? Who then is foolish one, the tree hugger or the one who no longer has a tree to hug?

As I sit and contemplate these things, my mind battles on… YOU ARE THE GUILTY ONE! YOU ARE APART OF THE PROBLEM! YOU ARE TO BLAME! and this internal battle is beginning to hurt. It is time to change, time to modify my behavior… They say it takes 90 days to change a behavior/habit. 90 days! That is 3 months of constantly choosing against the feelings of your body and mind, of using some self-control. Like Paul says in the good book, it is hard to make your body your slave… it is against our fleshly desires of greed, want and instant gratification.

Some people are getting it, but unfortunately the citizens of the Midwest are stalwarts and laggards in this green movement. What can I do that actually reduces my carbon footprint (mine is 19.505 tonnes, which is a tad below the US average of 20.4)? I must begin to do the things I have ignored… Can I do reduce and still live in abundance? That depends on my definition of abundance…

An abundance of friends, smiles and food or an abundance of clothes, styles, and stuff.

Abundance in the former is the scarcest of all commodities (something that is useful and/or valuable). We are (forgive the use of this next word) “brainwashed” to be ill content, to compare and to always want more, better and the best. Contentment that is rooted in simplicity and selflessness, is hard to come by in a consumerist world, driven by advertisements the illusion of “lack”. There is a scarcity of common sense, self-control and contentment in this world, it is this problem that must be overcome to provide a solution to the other scarcity problem on this world.

Think about this provocative quote:

If the earth dies, you die. If you die the earth survives. - The Day the Earth Stood Still

Tell me, why is it that life ebbs and flows? Screamingly fast, one second; and excruciatingly slow the next. It is a fact of life, and there is no other explanation than this: God loves to screw with our routines… sorry, mess with our routines (much more God-like lingo).

And as an acquaintance of mine recently said, “It is life that is messy, life that is fast-paced, life that is unpredictable… and we might as well stop fighting it and just go with the flow no matter the clip.” Ok, my acquaintance didn’t say this, I cannot remember exactly what he said… this is my interpretation of the idea he so eloquently stated. No matter how it is stated the take-away is the same: stop relying on yourself, start relying on Jesus. Stop trying to control the frenzy that is life on this spinning piece of rock and clay; start opening your hands, loosen the grip on your dreams, desires, possessions and accomplishments. Take the strengths, talents and abilities God has given you and give them back; to be used for His purpose and calling, and not your own.

This doesn’t mean quit your job, sell your car and become a hobo. It means different things for different people… I cannot tell you what has superseded Christ in your life… you have to take stock of your own lot and let the chaff be burned away… uncovering God’s best for you, the grain/fruit that nourishes others and brings you joy. Cause that is what our gifts, talents and abilities are ultimately for, to lead others to the nourishing waters of Christ. Cool.

creative, lyrically driven, political, rebellious spouting… Find him here.

Some lively banter on the air waves… as passed to me by my friend Jason.  James Dobson seems to be on a frenzy and seems to be throwing knives on this one, though I respect some of the work he has done this is over the top… I believe it is a great example of the ‘religious right’ using their influence for political reasons, rather than for the Glory of God.  And Obama’s remarks seem quite in line with a separation of Church and State, and the right of all to worship and live in this free country…  In his speech (that is under attack by Dobson… found here) Obama cited Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount as, “a passage that is so radical that it’s doubtful that our own Defense Department would survive its application.”  Now that is truth I could stand on.

You can find a comparison of words here: jamesdobsondoesntspeakforme.com

This past weekend I spent some time with my family at b-e-a-utiful Lake Tahoe. It was a trip. Not only was the weekend enjoyable, and filled with swimming, floating and biking… it was also chalked full of quality family time. It amazes me how well we all get along, despite or in spite of the differences. It is all about family, and mine is a dang fun one! Here is a pick of me and the moms biking it up to Squaw Valley!

and by bike I mean my 1972 Honda CB 500… It has been in the shop for the last 2 months getting it’s front forks rebuilt. Which included ordering a $2 part from Japan, which they didn’t have so then a part was fabricated by a metal smith for use on the front fork gaskets/bearings. Think metal o-ring that keeps all the bearings and oil/grease in place. So gas will now be conserved and my monthly gasoline bill will go down considerably!!! Woooohoooo!

In the village of Busung, on the Southwestern coast of Simeulue. Where waves patrol the coves edge and coral is sharp as razors, there is a life in the fringe. A community, a village, a people. Lacking luxury; they live life than many cannot imagine. Life here demands community.

Taipei, Taiwan
On our first leg of the journey to Indonesia, we had a refueling in Taipei, Taiwan. A mere 12 hours after leaving LAX… it was a sleepy flight as we were lucky enough to Joe and I each got a middle row of seats in the back of the plane for ourselves. This allowed us to put the armrests up, pop an Advil PM, and lounge across the empty seats to find some rest. In the refueling stop in Taipei, we had just enough time to order some rice noodles, take some pictures of some AIDS awareness ads and stretch our tired legs, then it was back on the plane. Destination: the city of Medan, on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia.

Medan, Indonesia
We landed in Medan, Sumatra after a quick change of planes in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, after an incredibly long 28-hour travel day. The first thing that struck me was that I was a giant in this new land, and secondly… well, Indonesia is sometimes referred to as the ‘land that left logic behind’ and this was my initial observation as a 50 passenger bus pulled up to the plane to transport us to the terminal, which was no more than 20 yards away. We could have walked to the terminal and back 20 times, in the time it took for the bus to transport us to the passenger let-off area. R for ridiculous.

We were picked up by Jim and Laura, two of the directors for the NGO (non-governmental organization), IBI. They were gracious and were excited to talk to Joe and catch up on the news from the States. Jim was a surgeon as he dissected his way through Medan traffic were dotted white lines mean nothing and the horn is used to say hello, tell them your turning, warning the car next to you that they are too close, and all other sorts of times for reasons I could not figure. It was a trip. Picture this: two lanes of road but being used like it was a five lane road, with motorbikes zooming in and out, and a complete lack of organization… Road rules seemed to be loose suggestions rather than sort of mandate.

We spent a total of two days in Medan, one when we arrived and one before we departed… Joe’s friend Gabe met us in Medan before we departed and his company was exceptional, as he added a bit of comic relief as well as some perspective on life in Indonesia. After our first day in Medan we hopped on a prop plane and headed to the island of Simeulue, 1-hour west of Sumatra and only recently equipped with a modern airport facility. Joe told me stories of his first arrival, landing in a field on an old jalopy two-prop plane, praying that the rivets stay together on the bumpy landing.

Points of interest: Sun Plaza - a mega-mall in the heart of Medan, five stories tall and a plethora of stores to choose from, including a full grocery store and a movie theatre; a $7 foot massage, head massage and hair tonic at a Salon in the Mall; a $13 two-hour full body massage at a spa close to our hotel; Tim-Tam Slam’s; Indian food that did a work on my digestive system and fresh Sumatran coffee at $2 per Kilo.

Simeulue, Indonesia
The flight to Simeulue was beautiful, we passed over the uninhabited western region of Sumatra that was staggering in its lush highland rainforests and white sandy beaches along the western coast. The weather was clear on the approach to Simeulue, so we were able to see the islands of Nias and other smaller islands that make up chain of western islands. After landing in Sinnebon, Simeulue, Scott (the director of IBI on Simeulue), picked us up and took us on the 5 km drive to camp, a drive that took over 30 minutes as the potholes in the road made driving over 10 mph impossible. It looked as if the island had sustained heavy mortar fire as the road was dented with potholes and dips that threw you in around the car and made the most steel of stomachs sour. The drive from the airport took us through a couple of small villages, to IBI’s home village of Busung (Boo-sue) which was located on the Southwestern coast on the edge of a cove with two very large waves patrolling the edges. The cove itself was beautiful with clear blue water and a postcard-esque view of the sunset.

IBI’s camp was located on about 2 acres of land with the back side of the property consisting of a rainforest rising into a small mount. About a third of the camp was being utilized for gardening, with Jas and Jufinar as the head gardeners and Juel and C-Par rounding out the crew. Most days were spent with these four, doing gardening practicums, making compost, preparing and planting melons, and we even made a worm factory which will hopefully add to their variety of compost techniques.

Most nights were spent in camp with Brooke (Scott’s wife) cooking up a delicious meal, followed by time of conversations, debates and stories. Joe spent 6 months with these two before he left for the states in December, preparing them to take over the NGO’s daily operations on the island. So there was no shortage of stories and antidotes on island living. Stories ranging from catching monkeys and other wild beasts to skinning snakes and many techniques or best practices when using a squatty potty… think hole in the ground with nothing but a bucket of water to clean up with…. sick.

Highlights from Simeulue: Mea Ache and Kopi (noodles and coffee) at the smoke filled Kopi shop; painting a house with a termite killing mix of diesel, motor oil and diaoxinol (a pesticide which has been illegal in the states since the 90’s); bogey boarding in Alos Alos; drinking an chocolate avocado smoothie; cleaning and grilling red fish (one of the favorite locally caught fish); playing Friday night soccer with the fellas in the village; and hanging out with the crew in the garden (Jas, Jufinar, Juel, and C-par).

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
While we only spent a total of 6 hours in KL, I will say this would be a place I would like to visit more extensively. Not only was the airport top-notch (cleanest and most modern airport I have ever been in), it was beautiful outside. KL seems to be a city on the rise one that will probably be tracking close to Singapore in the next 10 years.